by Sofia Daniel
“I know your grandfather,” snarled the older man. “He will be most disappointed that you’re keeping such low company.”
Orlando snorted. “Right now, the old man will be overjoyed that I’m with a girl.”
Camden Liddell frowned, seeming not to understand Orlando’s comment. I guess the all-knowing Deputy Chief Constable didn’t get the memo about Orlando getting suspended for lewd conduct with Maxwell.
“Be sure to say hello while you’re picking up a free crate of scotch.” Orlando walked to the door and held it open.
Liddell walked across the room and paused at the doorway to shoot Orlando the filthiest glower. I held my breath, waiting for him to offer up a parting threat or a promise to return, but he turned his gaze to me.
“Miss Hancock,” he sneered. “Do not think for one moment that you will succeed in besmirching the good name of my niece.”
I cupped a hand behind my ear. “Bes-what?”
“You may have lured Elizabeth’s suitors with the promise of sex, but men don’t marry girls like you. When they finish using your type, they turn to pure-hearted girls like Elizabeth.”
The words hit like a bucket of warm urine, but I held myself steady and didn’t flinch. “Are you sure we’re talking about the same person? Because I’m thinking about the Elizabeth who got a bunch of eleven-year-old girls hooked on cocaine.”
He bared his teeth. “You lying—”
“That’s enough.” Orlando stepped in front of the older man. “Fuck off right now, Camden Liddell, the Deputy Chief Constable of Police Scotland. Or I’ll upload the recording I made of your rant to the internet and let the whole world wonder why you’re harassing a minor.”
His face turned purple. “It’s illegal to record someone without their consent.”
Orlando bared his teeth. “It’s also illegal to threaten girls, but that didn’t stop you from spewing lecherous words at my girlfriend.”
“What?” His features slackened. “I said no such—”
“Leave, unless you want to be judged by the court of Youtube.”
His eyes narrowed, and his lips pressed into a thin line. My throat went dry. That was the kind of look that told me this wasn’t over. If Camden Liddell didn’t return later tonight to finish off his threat, he would find some other way to get at me.
Blanking my expression, I swallowed hard. People like him thrived on the weaknesses of their enemies. I needed to stay strong until I could work out what on earth these people were hiding.
“Miss Hancock,” Liddell said with a snarl. “As soon as we find your fingerprints on that weapon—”
“Bugger off, Chief Cunt,” I snapped.
If looks could kill, Camden Liddell’s glower would have incinerated my body into ashes and blasted me into the ninth circle of hell. I raised my chin, daring him to say something incriminating, but he turned on his heel and left.
As Orlando stepped out of the room, I sucked in several frantic breaths. “Shit!” Maybe I shouldn’t have called him the c-word. “Shit, shit, shit!”
The door opened, and Orlando returned. “What the bloody hell was that about?”
“I don’t know.” The words came out in a rush. “Do you think Myra said something incriminating in her confession?”
Orlando turned to the door, as though Camden Liddell might kick it down at any moment. I also glanced at the room’s only exit and frowned. After dodging two bullets this morning, my sense of paranoia blared at full alert, but there was no mistaking what I’d seen earlier.
“That wanker had something in his pocket,” I said.
“What?” Orlando turned back to me, his eyes wide.
“You distracted him.”
“It’s a good thing that I did.” Orlando crossed the room and stood by my bed. One of his large hands cupped the side of my face. “You can’t be left alone. Ever.”
I dipped my head. “They want to get me.”
“We won’t give them a chance.” He pressed a kiss on my temple. “There are three of us. Four if you count Mr. Burgh.”
“And Gideon,” I said.
“Right.” Orlando nodded. “Adewale, too. Between the five of us, we’ll keep you safe.”
“They’ve fucked with the wrong person,” I said. “Every time they come after me it just makes me more determined to work out what they’re hiding.”
Chapter Five
Orlando and I spent the next several minutes waiting for the return of Camden Liddell, the arrival of a doctor, or even DCI Cromar, but nobody disturbed us. He positioned us both on the bed so that I lay between his parted legs with my back resting on his strong chest.
He caressed my hair with soft, rhythmic strokes until my arms and legs stopped throbbing, and my eyelids became heavy.
“This is nice,” I murmured.
“It could be like this every day when you return to the academy,” he said.
A soft laugh huffed out of my lungs. “Mr. Burgh won’t allow it.”
“He didn’t approve of me before but I think he does now,” said Orlando. “You saw how he thanked me for saving your life.”
“Did he?” I murmured. “Everything about this morning is a blur.”
Orlando kissed the shell of my ear. “It won’t happen again.”
“Hmmm…” Drowsiness held my tongue, as did Camden Liddell’s parting words. It wasn’t over. Those bastards would come after me until I was in no position to threaten their precious fortune. I shifted to the right, wrapped an arm around Orlando’s middle, and rested my side on his chest.
Right now, I wanted to lose myself in his embrace. To drift into a deep sleep in his arms and wake up from a bizarre dream where Myra had tried to shoot me. A long breath heaved out of my lungs. This academy might look like something out of a Disney movie but my experience was turning out like a story from the Brothers Grimm.
“How is she?” whispered a voice.
My eyes cracked open, and two identical faces peered down at me. My vision was too blurred to make out the smaller figure behind them, but from the dark brown skin, it could only be Gideon. I had felt safe with Orlando, but having my best friend and the knights at my bedside wiped away my last layer of tension.
Warm fingers brushed my hair off my face. “What did the doctor say?”
“She hasn’t seen one yet,” said Orlando.
“Why didn’t you call someone?” snapped Kendrick.
I wanted to explain that neither of them had seen me nearly shot or threatened by one of the most powerful police officers in the whole of Scotland, but a wave of tiredness dragged me under. As I drifted to sleep, Orlando murmured something about not wanting to leave me alone.
The next time I awoke, a pair of doctors stood at my bedside. Gideon sat on the fluorescent green chair with the kind of smug expression I recognized from being the teacher’s pet.
“Lilah,” said the older doctor, an Indian lady whose hair was cut in a severe bob. “I understand you’ve had a nasty incident with a gun and broken glass. May we examine your wounds?”
The younger doctor glanced at Gideon, but I said, “He can stay. We get changed in front of each other all the time.”
While the older doctor checked my hearing and tested me for signs of a concussion, the younger examined my wounds and determined that none of the cuts were deep enough to warrant stitches. They glued some of the longer cuts together to prevent scarring.
When they left, Gideon leaned forward and frowned. “Are you alright? Nevis says that Myra Highmore was sent by Lady Liddell to commit murder.”
My face twisted into a grimace. “Elizabeth’s mother handed her the gun and told her to get me to confess.”
“About the curry?” Gideon wrinkled his nose.
“And all the other stuff.”
He rubbed his chin. “I can’t see threats working on you.”
“Neither could Lady Liddell,” I muttered. “My guess is that she wanted to get rid of two problems in one crazed attack.”
&
nbsp; Gideon winced. “Your claim to the title and the girl supposedly preventing Elizabeth from forming a union with a suitable young man?”
I reared back. “You knew about them?”
“I had my suspicions.” He tilted his head to the side and frowned. “It’s not my place to out anyone, regardless of how much I despise them.”
“Right.” I stared at my hands, not knowing what to say. As long as it wasn’t me Elizabeth was trying to kiss, I didn’t give a shit that she was into girls. And being best friends with someone didn’t mean they had to share sensitive information that might get someone hurt.
“Lilah?” The concern in Gideon’s voice made my head snap up.
I met his ebony eyes and smiled. “I’m glad you didn’t gossip about them. It just proves that you’ve got principles.”
“The mark of any good consigliere,” he said.
Warmth spread through my heart, which melted at his words. I reached out and placed my hand on his. “Thanks for sticking by my side.”
Leaning forward in his green seat, Gideon pursed his lips. “We’ll need to play things very carefully if you’re going to survive the next few months. No confrontations or unfounded accusations until we gather irrefutable proof.”
“That doesn’t mean I won’t punch Elizabeth in the face if I ever see her.”
“Not if,” he said. “When.”
Dread lined my belly with what felt like stones. I sat back on my pillows and stared at my friend, hoping he wasn’t about to share some horrible news. “What do you mean?”
“Now that Myra has been caught with a gun, who do you think will get the blame for all the cocaine-related activities?”
I groaned. “And Elizabeth will be let loose into the academy?”
“Hopefully not without some time in rehab, but expect to see her soon.” The door opened, and Mr. Burgh stepped inside looking exhausted. Gideon stood. “Will I see you tomorrow?”
“Aren’t you going to visit friends in Glasgow?” I asked.
His face dropped. “I couldn’t leave you—”
“Go.” I squeezed his hand. “We can catch up during the week.”
“Alright.” Gideon leaned down and placed a kiss on my cheek. After straightening, he gave Mr. Burgh a nod of greeting and walked out of the room.
The door clicked shut. Mr. Burgh crossed the room and sat at my bedside. “You’ve made an excellent friend there.”
“He’s the best,” I said with a smile.
“Do you know that the Deloraine twins are standing outside the room with Mr. Nevis?”
“I think the doctors kicked them out while I was sleeping.”
Mr. Burgh raised his brows but didn’t comment. Perhaps Orlando was right and he didn’t mind the knights so much now that Orlando had proven himself more than a lecher who wanted to share me with his friends. But curiosity burning in my chest overrode my speculations on whether my grandfather approved of my boyfriends, and I sat up on the bed.
“What happened with Myra?” I asked.
He lowered himself into the green seat, squeezed his eyes shut, and pinched the bridge of his nose. “It was a bloody gun, not an air pistol. They also found cocaine in her room along with a one-hundred-hole capsule-filling machine. Miss Liddell gave a statement saying she believed the contents of the capsules to be bentonite clay mixed with caffeine.”
“Myra’s getting the blame for the drugs?” I asked.
“The distribution of cocaine is the least of her problems,” said Mr. Burgh. “They’re going to try her for attempted murder.”
I gulped. Ploys like this explained how the Liddells managed to be the dirtiest bastards in the land but with the cleanest reputations. “Am I still under suspicion for anything?”
Mr. Burgh shook his head. “There was no trace of anyone’s fingerprints on that gun but Miss Highmore’s.”
My shoulders slumped with disappointment, and I stared into my lap.
“What’s wrong?” he asked.
“I hoped they would have found Lady Liddell’s prints on the gun, too.”
“She wouldn’t be so careless,” said Mr. Burgh. “Miss Highmore said in her statement that Lady Liddell gave her the gun, but the police checked the CCTV footage, and there is no sign of the woman entering the academy.”
“Are all routes into the academy covered by security cameras?” I asked.
Mr. Burgh shook his head. “Only those most likely to be used by students or intruders.” He slipped his hand into mine. “Lilah, I want you to leave the academy.”
A tight band wrapped around my chest, squeezing off my air. “Why?”
His brows furrowed. “Didn’t the events of today demonstrate how desperately they want you gone?”
“Running away isn’t the answer.” I turned to the window, where an ambulance had parked in the loading bay. The paramedics wheeled out a body bag on a stretcher. “The Liddells can get at me anywhere.”
“They left you alone until you came to Templar,” he said.
Right now, I couldn’t look at Mr. Burgh. I couldn’t bear to see the pain in his eyes, knowing that his worry for me put it there. My throat thickened, and I swallowed hard. Now that I had a real parent, I couldn’t bear to let him go.
“That’s not true,” I whispered. “When I was born, Lady Liddell found a way to get a sample of my blood from the prison infirmary. Between her and Camden Liddell, they can reach me wherever I go.”
After I told him about my encounter with the Deputy Chief Constable, Mr. Burgh went silent for a long time. Maybe he heard the truth in my words, maybe he was trying to work out a place beyond the Liddells’ reach. It didn’t matter because I wasn’t leaving the academy.
I stared down at my fingers, which had intertwined with those of Mr. Burgh’s larger hand. In the few months I had been in Templar Academy, I had made a loyal friend in Gideon, found love with Maxwell, and was about to start a relationship with Orlando. Kendrick and I had something, but it would take a while for him to pull the broom out from his ass and admit he liked me.
“Alright,” he said in a low voice.
“Huh?” I raised my head and met his red-rimmed, sapphire eyes.
“You can stay, but I want you sleeping under my roof.”
“Or in Orlando’s room,” I added.
His eyes narrowed. “Don’t push your luck.”
Chapter Six
Just after a nurse arrived with my discharge papers and pack of antibiotics, Mrs. Campbell called to say that a younger girl had been sent to the Royal Infirmary in an ambulance. She hadn’t been at breakfast this morning, due to having taken too many of Elizabeth’s diet pills.
Mr. Burgh had to rush back to the accident and emergency department to check on the girl, and he let me stay the weekend in Glasgow with the knights.
We piled into the back of a limousine, which took us to the Glaswegian Hotel, a huge building behind George Square, the location of the fateful fashion show. Orlando wrapped an arm around my waist while the twins checked in with a receptionist who welcomed them like old friends.
“You’ll soon be able to put your feet up,” he murmured.
I gazed up into his hazel eyes and smiled. “Thanks.” My throat thickened. “For everything.”
He grinned. “I would take a bullet for you.”
One side of my head pulsed from having been struck with a pistol, making me grimace. My gaze dropped to the mosaic floor, and I placed a hand on my belly.
“Too soon?” he asked.
“Something like that,” I muttered.
The suite turned out to be a penthouse room at the top of the hotel with the largest king-sized bed in existence taking up a third of the wall. With its alabaster sheets and cream cushions, it was wide enough to fit a quartet of rugby players and their girlfriends. Cream-colored sofas took up the rest of the space with matching armchairs and daybeds.
Freezing at the threshold, I stared through the floor-to-ceiling windows running alongside an entire wall. It o
ffered a panoramic view of Glasgow along with the hills that extended beyond the city.
“Lilah?” Maxwell squeezed my shoulder. “Are you alright?”
“Yes,” I whispered. This place was ridiculously luxurious, and it was such a pity I wasn’t in the mood to fully enjoy it.
Orlando, who had entered the room before me with Kendrick, turned around and fixed me with a worried glance. “We’re not expecting anything from you this weekend.”
I glanced up at Maxwell, who shook his head. “You need rest.”
“Why don’t we order some room service?” Kendrick walked across the room to a glass dining table with four chairs upholstered in ivory leather. “We can work out what you’re going to do on Monday.”
“Yeah,” I whispered.
Actually, food sounded brilliant. I stepped into the room, glancing from left to right and wishing my stomach would stop fluttering. It wasn’t like I’d been brought up poor. Billy Hancock’s house was massive and expensively decorated, but it was gaudy compared to the tasteful decor of the suite.
I shook off those thoughts. Why the bloody hell was I worried about interior design when someone had only this morning nearly killed me?
Orlando guided me to a leather three-seater and placed me in the middle. He sat on my left, while Maxwell slipped into the seat on my right. I glanced at Kendrick, who leafed through a leather menu.
“Do you come here often?” I tried not to picture the knights here with Elizabeth.
“Most Glasgow weekends.” Maxwell wrapped an arm around my shoulder. “More importantly, how are you feeling?”
I rubbed my temples, which throbbed with the beginnings of a headache. It was the type when every muscle had gone so rigid that the bones felt like they would implode under the pressure.
Orlando placed my hands between his and rubbed life into my fingers. His warmth seeped into my bones, chasing away the numbness that had taken over my heart. Nobody spoke for a while, but all three of the knights turned to me with expectant gazes. That’s when I remembered it was my turn to speak.
“Right now, it feels like I’m about to step in the ring with a heavyweight champion and there’s no turning back.”
